Steam-engine governor



(No Model.)

E. OONRADY. STEAM ENGINE GOVERNOR.

Patented Aug. 22, 1893.

No. sosflss.

NITED STATES PATENT FFICEe EUGEN OONRADY, OF MORGANTON, NORTH CAROLINA.

STEAM-ENGINE GOVERNOR.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 503,785, dated August 22, 1893.

Application filed November 7, 1890. Serial No. 370.618. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, EUGEN CONRADY, of Morganton, North Carolina, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Steam-Engine Governors, of which the following is a specification. V

This invention has for its object to provide a centrifugal governor for steam engines, adapted, first, to operate equally well in any position; secondly, to be adjusted as to its sensitiveness to variations of speed, so that it may be made to operate the throttle valve when the speed of its revolution reaches any predetermined rate; and thirdly, to overcome the resistance in the mechanism which communicates motion to the throttle valve from the governor, without obstruction to the free motion of the governor arms.

To these ends my invention consists in the improvements which I will now proceed to describe and claim.

Of the accompanying drawings forming a part of this specification, Figure 1 represents a side view of a governor embodying my invention. Fig. 2 represents a side view from a different point and showing the preferred means for indirectly connecting the governor with the throttle operating mechanism. Fig. 3 represents a side view of a modification.

The same letters of reference indicate the same parts in all of the figures.

In the drawings a represents the governor shaft which may be adapted, in any suitable way, to be rotated by the engine controlled or governed by the governor.

The essential features of my improved governor are, first, two weighted lovers 1? b mounted to oscillate freely on pivots or bearings b connected with the shaft a,each lever having an arm I) extending at right angles to the direction of the length of the lever from the center on which the lever oscillates and an antifriction roll 0 on said arm, and secondly, a cross headd extending across the shaft at right angles thereto and fitted to slide in the direction of the length of the shaft, said cross head having a flat face on which the rolls 0 a bear. The cross head dis connected by arms ff with a collar g, which is fitted to slide on the shaft a and is caused to rotate with said shaft by a key h on the shaft engaged with a groove in the collar g.

Hence the collar and cross head rotate with the shaft, although they are free to move in the direction of the length thereof. The collar g is yieldingly supported by a spiral spring 2, one end of which bears on the collar, while the other end is supported by a shoulder or hearing on the shaft, as hereinafter described. The levers b b are provided at their ends with weights 6 c, said weights being so proportioned to the length of the arms of the levers that each lever is perfectly balanced in any position it may assume. When the shaft ais rotated in the direction indicated by the arrow 2, Fig. 2, the levers are revolved about the axis of rotation of the shaft. The cross head is normally held by its supporting spring 'i so that it holds the levers b b about parallel with the shaft a when the shaft is at rest or moving slowly, the spring pressing the cross head against the rolls 0 c and acting through said rolls and through the arms I) to hold the levers in said position. The rotation of the shaft tends to throw the weighted ends of the levers b b outwardly from the shaft in the direction indicated by the arrows 3, 3, Fig. 2. When the rotation of the shaft reaches the degree of rapidity which makes it desirable to operate the throttle and check the speed of the engine, the rolls 0 c, which are moved in the direction indicated by the arrows 4:, 4: by the described movement of the levers b b, are caused to move the cross head (1 against the pressure of the spring i sufficiently to operate the throttle through suitable intermediate devices, such as are hereinafter described. 7 The means for connecting the cross head d with the throttle may be variously modified. In Fig. 1 the collar 9 has a peripheral groove itwhich may be engaged with throttle operating devices such as are used in connection with the grooved collar of an ordinary ball governor, the spring '6 in this case being supported by a collar is rigidly attached to the shaft.

ICO

to engage theloosepulley p with-the pulleys p p and cause it to rotate with the shaft a/by amovement of thepulley 19 toward the pulleys p and p. The spring 2' bears against the sliding pulley p and when the head (1 is moved by the described"centrifugal"action of the 10' communicates motion from the latter toany suitable regulating mechanism adapted to actuate the throttle valve. Said regulating mechanism should have a spring to retract it and open the throttle valve when in 'conseq'u'enceof a'redu'ction of? speed'the' governor arm's fall back a'nd'the pressure of the spring oiithepulleys is 'reduc'edso that the-pulley pf is again loose. I 7

An important advantage resultingfrom the employment of the last described" means for communicating motion from the cross head the governor arms have to overcome'tlrefrictional and other resistance of the regulating l mechanism,resultingfrom'the contact-thereof 1-=po1ition andthus influence thespeedofthe engine "or motor. Hence, as in 'allother govei-nors heretofore known the weights have to be-made'of considerable size and the'shaft seen, however, that the pressure imparted by run at a high speed to overcome thedisturbingiiifluenceof saidresistance. It will be l. the spring tothe friction pulleys does not in- Vol-ve frictional or other resistance to themovein ents of the governorpf Hence the weights c'an 'be much smaller than they could otherwise be, an'd'the governor can be made to oper-- atewhen.the"shaft a is running less rapidly than is necessary when the ordinary direct the" governor is employed. In each or the ex'-' 'connectionof theregulating mechanism with 'amples-shownthe force of the springcan be adjusted to'vary the sensitiveness of the governorv In the construction shown in Figs. '1

result may be accomplished by adjusting the seriesof friction pulleys, the pulley p being detachably securedby a set screw 10 while the pulleys p p are free to moveto a'limited extent in'the direction of the length of the shaft." In this'way the governorcan be made so'sensitive that the least increase of sepeed over a predetermined rate will cause'thegov- 'ernor arms to open at once to their fullest ex- 'withthecollar 9, before they can changetheir.

tent and close as quicklyuponareduction of the speed.

The arms or levers b b areshown in Figs.

1 and 2 as mounted on pivots or bearing which are parts of a stud or pin passed through a hole in the shafta andsec'ured by a set screw m. In Fig. 3 said levers are connected by separate pivots to arms at n attached to the shaft a and projecting in opposite directions therefrom.-

It will be seen that the weighted levers b b andthe arms I) extending at right angles with said levers from'their pivots and bearing on the cross head d, enable the governor to operate equally well in any position, or, in other words, when theshaft is either ho'rizontal, vertical or inclined. J

In theconstruction slrownin Fig. 3 ,"the operation ofthe governor isdue to the factthat one arm of each lever b is'normallyfarther from the center of rotatiorithanthe other arm, the lovers occupyinginclined' positions as j shown. The weight'of-each ljeverthatis faris that there is n'ofinterference with: thefree movementof thegovernor arms or levers andcross head by friction resulting fromtdirect contact of the regulating mechanism with'the collar g,-there'being'no contact between'said mechanism and collar. When the collar g is directly connected with'theregulating mech .anismi-as described in connection with Fig. 1, 3

thest from the center is therefore :enabled' to overpower or control the other so that when the levers are revolved the tend-ency 'of the outer arm is 'tomove still fartherbutward. For this reason it isdeSirable to=provid-e some means for preventing the arms I? 6 fromassu ming' positions parallel -with'the shaft; and

.this: maybe accomplished byarranging any suitable stop devices" to -'prevent the longer arms from swinging inwardly beyond a-predetermined point. n'lheweightedleversb may be prevented-"from swinging past their required position of restwhenforced'tthereto by the springi by means'ofanysuitable stop.

In the formofthe governorshown-iinFigs. l

' and 2 this stop may'be'a' pin rpassingthrough the shaft; as shown," 'against which-t heiupper sides of-the upper portions onairms'bft-he lever -b will rest when-the said *a'rmsare iritheir normal position, whil'einRthe-form shown in 'Fig. 3 thesaid-stop maybethe edgesfoffihe 'crosshead d which may be extended to such an extent that its sides willbear 'against the innersides ofthe lower portion-'or'a'rms of the levers b whenthe'device is at*restin its normal position. I-do-not limit myself tethese forms of stops; howeveig but maywary the same-Without departing -from the spirit of my invention.

' 1. In a governonthe combination' ofthe shaft, the"y-ieldingly* supported orosshead thereon, andthe levers mount-ed intermediate the length of the levers and bearing'on the topsurface of the crosshead, as setforth.

2. The combination of th'eshaftor spindle,

tatively-engaged therewith, a; spring yieldingly supportlng said crosshead and supported by a fixture on the shaft, and the levers mounted intermediate of their ends to oscillate on pivots at opposite sides of the shaft, each lever being provided at both ends with weights, said levers being also provided at intermediate points with arms having anti-friction rollers bearing on the top surface of the crosshead, as set forth.

8. The combination of the shaft, the cross head rotatively engaged with the shaft and adapted to slide thereon, the weighted levers mounted to oscillate on pivots at opposite sides of the shaft, a series of friction pulleys on said shaft, one being affixed to the shaft, another loose thereon, and the third adapted to rotate with and slide upon the shaft, said loose pulley being connected with a device for transmitting motion, and a spring interposed between the oross head and the sliding pulley whereby the motion of the cross head is caused to impart pressure to the sliding pulley, and the latter is caused to co-operate with the fixed pulley in rotating the loose pulley by friction, as set forth.

4. The combination of the shaft, the crosshead rotatively engaged therewith, and adapted to slide thereon, the levers mounted inter-- the sensitiveness of the governor, as set forth.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification, in the presence of two subscribing witnesses, this 31st day of October, A. D. 1890.

EUGEN CONRADY. Witnesses:

S. T. PEARSON, GEo. T. ERWIN. 

